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They are responsible for collecting the pollen that feeds the entire hive. Worker bees hand off responsibilities as they age. When you encounter a honeybee outside of the hive, it’s most likely an elder worker. ©iStock.com/Niklas Toelle. Drones. Male bees make up the next caste in the hive’s structure — the drones.
As bees collect nectar from flowers, they inadvertently transfer pollen from the male part of the flower, known as the anther, to the female part, called the stigma. This transfer of pollen is crucial for fertilization and the production of seeds.
Male bees do not collect pollen to feed larvae, and their pollination role has been underappreciated. Here we compare pollination effectiveness, visit frequency and pollen foraging behaviour between female and male individuals of a mining bee, Andrena emeishanica, visiting a nectariferous spring flower (Epimedium pubescens).
The bees use nectar to make honey which is the primary energy source for the adult bees and for growing bee larvae. The bees collect pollen which is fed to bee larvae as a source of protein to help build big strong young bees.
Male bees are usually short-lived and never collect pollen, nor do they have other responsibilities in connection with providing for the young. Female bees do all the work of nest making and provisioning and usually have special anatomical structures that assist them in carrying pollen.
Male bees may be especially implicated in long-distance pollen transfer [18,58–60], although outside the tropics there is little direct evidence this is true. Mating behaviors of male bees [11,15,61–66] are better known than foraging behaviors. The two, however, are likely closely linked.
Do Male or Female Bees Collect Pollen from Flowers? Male bees are known as drones while a female bee is known as a worker bee. Unlike female bees, male bees do not have stingers and gather neither nectar nor pollen. The primary role of a drone is to mate with the queen bee.
How do bees pollinate flowers step by step? Step 1: Plants produce nectar to attract bees to their flowers so they can be pollinated; Step 2: While drinking nectar, bees also collect pollen on their fuzzy bodies from the flower’s anthers (male part of the plant)
Bucket orchids use their fragrant oils to lure the male bee, depositing pollen packets on his back before he leaves the flower. As a result of their mating behavior, male orchid bees are key pollinators for 600 to 700 different orchid species.
When bees collect pollen, they inadvertently transfer it from the male reproductive structures of one flower to the female reproductive structures of another flower, resulting in fertilization. This fertilization process allows plants to produce seeds and fruits, leading to the creation of new plants and the maintenance of plant diversity.